Quick Takes: A podcast by physicians, for physicians

“It's not necessarily all sunshine and rainbows.” A major, new study in The New England Journal of Medicine considers psilocybin and its potential for refractory depression. It’s received enthusiastic media coverage. Breakthrough drug? Overhyped headlines? Today, on Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer is joined by one of the study co-authors, Dr. Ishrat Husain Tier 2 Canada Research Chair and lead of...

“Always leave them wanting more.” On this episode of Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer enjoys a conversation with retiring psychiatrist, Dr. David Goldbloom. They discuss research, stigma, Dr. Goldbloom’s optimism for the future of psychiatry, and, yes, his retirement plans (spoiler alert: he’s thinking about writing a book and no mention of golf). As he heads into retirement Dr. Goldbloom shares hi...

“We can create an environment that’s safe, predictable, consistent, standardized and reproducible.” To discuss how simulation is changing the world of med-ed, Dr. David Gratzer hosted Dr. Petal Abdool, Medical Director of the CAMH Simulation Centre, and Stephanie Sliekers, Manager of Simulation and Digital Innovation at CAMH. You’ll hear all about: • the new Simulation Centre at CAMH • VR courses...

“It’s highly prevalent, highly available, highly pure and highly destructive.” In this episode of Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer speaks with Dr. David Castle, Director of the CAMH Centre for Complex Interventions, about the upwards trend in crystal methamphetamine use, its impact on health care visits and the risk of violence, the medication and psychological interventions available, and, yes, th...

“It’s an extraordinary program that literally helps hundreds of thousands of people a year.” During this discussion you will learn: • the incredible recovery rate of IAPT patients • the trackable outcomes are nearly 100% • how the program has become more equitable • and just they do with all the data the program collects. Follow us on Twitter THANKS FOR LISTENING! Quick Takes is a production of th...

“We need to think about more than just the classic medical model borrowed from infectious disease: simple bug, simple drug.” Today’s conversation on Quick Takes between Dr. David Gratzer and former National Institute of Mental Health Director, Dr. Thomas Insel , delves into what’s right and what’s wrong with the current state of mental health care.   Some highlights of this conversation include: •...

“I think most physicians should be aware that there is some evidence.” Cannabis continues to be a topic of interest to clinicians and in this episode of Quick Takes Dr. David Gratzer sits down with Dr. Kevin Hill of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School to discuss where we are at with using cannabinoids in treatment. In this discussion we learn: • there is a link between...

“There's this unanimous sense that how could something like this not exist? It seems so logical and beneficial.” This episode of Quick Takes kicks off a new series on mental health care innovations. These are short and focused episodes we hope you will enjoy. In this episode Dr. Gratzer speaks with Dr. Ainslie Heasman , about her about her program aimed at preventing  sexual abuse, Talking for Cha...

“I would get home at the end of my long shifts on the wards, and I would have nothing left. Nothing left for myself, nothing left for my spouse, nothing left for my children.” After another year of pandemic, the topic of physician burnout is more relevant than ever. On this episode of Quick Takes Dr. Gratzer speaks with award-winning medical educator and bestselling author Dr. Jillian Horton (of t...

Can the wearable on your patient’s wrist help prevent their next manic episode? On this episode of Quick Takes Dr. Gratzer hosts Dr. John Torous , digital psychiatry expert and the first guest to appear on 3 podcast episodes. They always have plenty to talk about as the field of digital mental health care continues to expand. This time, the primary focus is on wearables and data collection. They d...

Patients wait for care; quality is often uneven. Can we do better? In this episode, Dr. David Gratzer speaks with Dr. David Goldbloom, Senior Medical Advisor at CAMH and a professor at the University of Toronto. Dr. Goldbloom (a returning guest) has just written We Can Do Better: Urgent Innovations to Improve Mental Health Access and Care . They speak about the book – and Dr. Goldbloom’s optimism....

Sometimes it’s the simple things that make the biggest impact on patient care. In episode 14 of Quick Takes Dr. Gratzer  talks to two leading experts on transgender care, Dr. Alex Abramovich and Dr. June Lam to get their input on how to foster a respectful and supportive care setting. The conversation flows between research studies and in-person care and provides an excellent overview of the trans...

As Ramadan begins, what should you know as you care for your patients with mental health problems? In episode 13 of Quick Takes   Dr. Gratzer hosts Drs. Juveria Zaheer and Zainab Furqan in an insightful conversation on impact of Ramadan on our patients’ care. Drawing on their clinical experience and the literature, Drs. Zaheer and Furqan provide insights and suggestions for treating Muslim patient...

“Racism exists and it exists in the lives of our patients.” – Dr. Amy Gajaria In episode 12 of Quick Takes Dr. Gratzer hosts Drs. Amy Gajaria and Saadia Sediqzadah in a compelling conversation on the importance of addressing race and racism in mental health care. In this, our longest episode of Quick Takes to date (30 minutes), the conversation covers some necessary, some easy, and some possibly d...

Which apps should you recommend to your patients? On this episode of Quick Takes Dr. Gratzer sits down with returning guest and digital psychiatry expert, Dr. John Torous of Harvard University. They discuss the use of mobile apps to aid in diagnosis and treatment as well as issues around digital privacy, the potential of chatbots, and how AI may change the field. But at the heart of this episode,...

“If you have a room of one hundred people, one hundred people in that room have been affected by suicide.” So notes Dr. Juveria Zaheer , CAMH psychiatrist and clinician scientist with the Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, and Dr. David Gratzer’s guest on this episode of Quick Takes. In this 10th episode of Quick Takes , Dr. Gratzer and Dr. Zaheer discuss the weighty topic of suicide. Of...

“We’re having a digital moment in medicine and behavioural health like one we have never seen.” So notes Dr. Jay Shore , chair of the American Psychiatric Association's Telepsychiatry Committee, and Dr. David Gratzer’s guest on this episode of Quick Takes. In this episode Dr. Gratzer and Dr. Shore discuss the rise of virtual care during this pandemic and how our current experiences could impact th...

The world of mental health care delivery is being reshaped. In this episode of Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer sits down with the associate chief in the General Adult Psychiatry and Health Systems division at CAMH , Dr. Allison Crawford. Dr. Crawford is an expert on telemental health and in a time when working at home and social distancing are the norm, the need to learn about alternative health c...

With one year of legalized cannabis (and this podcast) under our belts, it’s time to look at the impact that cannabis (and now legal edibles) has had – and how to talk to your patients about their use. In this episode of Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer sits down with Dr. Leslie Buckley, the Chief of the Addictions Division at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, to discuss the ev...

Motivational interviewing for anxiety-related cannabis use (a role-play) In this episode’s Double Take , Drs. Gratzer and Buckley enjoy the opportunity to engage in some role-play as they run through a scenario in which Dr. Gratzer plays a young adult who is using cannabis to relieve his anxiety. Listen as Dr. Buckley demonstrates some MI techniques while she interviews him. THANKS FOR LISTENING!...

“I’m not sure we’re there yet, in psychiatry, in having that kind of useful information to make it really ‘just-for-me’ learning. I think ‘just-in-time’ is here, but ‘just-for-me’ I don’t think has arrived yet.” In a lively conversation with Dr. Gratzer, Dr. Ivan Silver, former CAMH VP Education, shares his thoughts on how medical education has been reshaped by technology. In this discussion, Dr....

“As we think about simulation, and how it might not be feasible for everyone to come to a place and practice in a simulation lab, how we can make those more virtually available either through augmenting with virtual reality, or other kinds of digital spaces where we can start to experiment in more team-based care.” CAMH’s VP of Education looks ahead and considers just-for-me learning experiences a...

“The biggest risk is self-study without actual demonstration of performance.” Dr. Peter Selby, CAMH Chief of Medicine in Psychiatry, discusses the current state of technology in medical education with Dr. Gratzer. Together they cover topics such as: how technology has helped bridge the access gap in medical education; the benefit of smartphones to just-in-time learning; the ability of VR and simul...

“It’s no accident that Alexa and Siri have names… so I suspect that technology will also morph to be more and more human-like.” Dr. David Goldbloom, CAMH Senior Medical Advisor, and Dr. Gratzer have a light-hearted conversation in which Dr. Goldbloom predicts 5 things that may be in store for the future of medical education and they consider how technology challenges the norms and expectations of...

AI. Apps. Simulation. In this episode of Quick Takes , Dr. David Gratzer sits down with Drs. Ivan Silver, Peter Selby, Sanjeev Sockalingam, and David Goldbloom. This esteemed group of influential educators discuss how technology has changed medical education, and some of the potential and pitfalls of future changes. In this episode the following was discussed: How technology in the classroom began...